Belgians

PRONUNCIATION:
BELL-juhns

LOCATION:
Belgium

POPULATION:
About 9 million

LANGUAGE:
Dutch; Flemish; French; German

RELIGION:
Roman Catholicism; smaller numbers of Muslims and Jews

1 • INTRODUCTION

The history of the Belgian people has made them strong and resourceful.
For centuries their land was invaded and occupied by different groups,
including the Romans, French, Burgundians, Spanish, Austrian, and
Germans. In 58
BC
, the Roman leader Julius Caesar called the region's Belgae
tribes the toughest opponents he had faced. Some of history's
major battles were fought in this small country. They include the Battle
of Waterloo that signaled the downfall of the French ruler Napoleon
Bonaparte (1769–1821), and the Battle of the Bulge in World War
II (1939–45). Although it was always recognized as a distinct
region, Belgium did not become a nation until 1831. Today,
Belgium's capital, Brussels, serves as headquarters for major
international organizations, including the European Community (EC) and
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

2 • LOCATION

Located in northwestern Europe, Belgium is one of the "low
countries" (much of its land is at or below sea level). This
small country is about as large as the state of Maryland.
Belgium's major geographic divisions are the coastal lowlands,
the central plain, and the high plateau of the Ardennes.

Belgium's two major population groups are the Flemish and the
Walloons. They live side by side but maintain sharply separate ethnic
identities. The Walloons were long
considered the dominant group. Their region had most of the
nation's industries, and their French cultural roots were
considered an advantage. However, since World War II (1939–45),
the northern Flemish region (Flanders) has gained an economic advantage
through the growth of commerce. The Flemish have also grown more
numerous than the Walloons.

3 • LANGUAGE

Belgium has three official languages: French, German, and Flemish, which
is similar to Dutch. Highway signs indicate the names of cities in two
languages (for example, Brussels/Bruxelles, Luik/Liège,
Bergen/Mons). The Flemish and the French-speaking Walloons have had many
conflicts over language-use in schools, courts, business, and
government.

NUMBERS

English

Flemish

one

een

two

twee

three

drie

four

vier

five

vijf

six

zes

seven

zeven

eight

acht

nine

negen

ten

tien

DAYS OF THE WEEK

English

Flemish

Sunday

Zondag

Monday

Maandag

Tuesday

Dinsdag

Wednesday

Woensdag

Thursday

Donderdag

Friday

Vrijdag

Saturday

Zaterdag

4 • FOLKLORE

Many of Belgium's colorful festivals are based on local myths.
One is the famous Cat Festival of Ypres. According to legend, medieval
Ypres was overrun by rats, and cats were brought in to kill them. But
the cats multiplied too fast, and people took to throwing them off the
tops of buildings. (Today this action is imitated during the festival
with toy cats.) Folklore also surrounds Belgium's traditional
puppet theater, whose marionettes are based on characters from the tales
of their particular cities.

5 • RELIGION

Belgium is a mostly Catholic country. In 1993 about 86 percent of the
population was Roman Catholic. Belgian Catholics are usually
baptized and receive a religious education. However, many do not
actively take part in other religious practices. Some only remain
members of the church because of its link with many of the
nation's social services. Beauraing and Banneaux in Wallonia are
popular destinations for pilgrimages (religious journeys).

6 • MAJOR HOLIDAYS

Belgium's legal holidays are New Year's Day (January 1),
Easter Monday (March or April), Labor Day (May 1), Independence Day
(July 21), All Saints' Day (November 1), and Christmas (December
25). Another important day is the Anniversary of the Battle of the
Golden Spurs on July 11.

In addition to these official holidays, Belgians love festivals of all
kinds. One of the most famous is the Shrove Tuesday Carnival in the town
of Binche, with its "March of the Gilles." On this Tuesday
before Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent), men dress in padded,
brightly colored costumes and white hats adorned with enormous ostrich
plumes. They dance down the street throwing oranges at the spectators,
who are also pelted with bags filled with water. Anyone who throws
oranges back at the marchers risks being beaten up by the other
townspeople.

7 • RITES OF PASSAGE

Rites of passage include major Catholic ceremonies such as baptism,
first communion, marriage and funerals. Special gifts are given for
baptisms, first communions, and marriages.

8 • RELATIONSHIPS

When relatives greet each other, they shake hands, hug, or kiss each
other on the cheek. Friends usually hug. Men and women or two female
friends might exchange kisses on the cheek. American-style "high
fives" (slapping each other's hands held high in the air)
have become popular among Belgian youth.

The languages of both the Flemings and the Walloons have formal and
informal modes of addressing another person. Both groups tend to use the
informal forms (
jÿ
in Dutch, and
tu
in French) more often than do the Dutch in Holland or the French in
France.

9 • LIVING CONDITIONS

Belgium has no significant housing shortage and few slums. In many
Belgian homes, part of the first floor is used for the family business.
Common terms for this arrangement include
winkelshuis
(shop house) and
handelshuis
(business residence). Many houses have large kitchens in which closely
knit Belgian families can gather.

10 • FAMILY LIFE

Men and women usually marry in their teens and twenties and begin their
families early. Most families have between two and four children.
Married couples often work side by side in either business or farming.

Instead of divorcing, couples who are in business together may remain
legally married in order to protect the business, maintaining separate
households with new partners. Children generally live with their parents
until they marry. The elderly are commonly cared for in homes run by
religious or social organizations. Women make up roughly 40 percent of
the work force.

11 • CLOTHING

Belgians, especially those in the cities, wear modern Western-style
clothes. Men who work in offices are expected to wear suit jackets to
work. It is generally acceptable for women to wear slacks to work. The
ethnic costumes of the Flemings and Walloons are seldom worn today. On
some farms women still wear the traditional dark-colored clothing and
white aprons, and men wear the old-fashioned caps.

12 • FOOD

Belgium is known for its rich, tasty food—the Belgians'
daily consumption of calories is among the world's highest. Two
of the best-known dishes are
carbonades
of beef (stewed in beer), and a chicken or fish chowder called
waterzooi.
The North Sea and Atlantic Ocean supply many varieties of fish. The
daily catch also includes eels, cockles, and mussels, all of which are
considered delicacies. Other Belgian specialties include waffles, over
300 varieties of beer, and chocolate.

13 • EDUCATION

Belgium has an unusually high literacy rate. Education is required
between the ages of six and fifteen. (Nearly all children start
earlier with nursery school and kindergarten.) Depending on the region,
classes may be taught in either French, Dutch, or German. Belgium has
eight major universities, including institutions in Brussels, Ghent,
Liège, and Antwerp.

14 • CULTURAL HERITAGE

Belgium's cultural heritage includes the paintings of Pieter
Breugel the Elder (c. 1515 or 1530–69), Jan van Eyck
(1395–1441), and Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640), and the
music compositions of Orlando di Lasso (1532–94) and César
Franck (1822–90). Modern Belgians writers include the Nobel
Prize-winning dramatist Maurice Maeterlinck (1862–1949), and the
popular detective novelist Georges Simenon (1903–89), who was
born in Liège. Prominent modern painters include expressionist
James Ensor (1860–1949) and surrealist René Magritte
(1898–1967).

15 • EMPLOYMENT

Belgians put in long hours at work. A businessperson who arrives at the
office at 9:00
AM
is considered lazy. In recent years, industrial jobs have increased in
the north (in the Flemish region). Jobs in service industries like
tourism have also expanded. However, small family businesses are still
common, and farmers grow vegetables,
fruit, and grains. Commercial fishing and fish processing are important
in cities near the North Sea.

16 • SPORTS

The most popular participant sport in Belgium is bicycling. Belgians
also participate in and watch soccer, and there are many regional teams.
Other sports popular in Belgium include tennis, horseback riding,
hiking, and skiing.

Belgians also enjoy the popular European sport of sand sailing. A sort
of minicar with sails called a "sand yacht" is driven
along the coast, powered by the wind. Also popular, especially in
Wallonia, is pigeon racing. As many as 100,000 pigeons may be entered in
a single race.

17 • RECREATION

Like many other Europeans, Belgians are avid soccer fans. There are over
sixty teams in the national league. Concerts and theater are popular
evening pastimes in the cities, and Brussels also has opera, ballet, and
cafe cabarets (restaurants with musical entertainment such as singing
and dancing).

18 • CRAFTS AND HOBBIES

Traditional Belgian crafts include lacemaking (for which Brussels is
especially famous), tapestry, glass, and pottery. Other folk arts
include folk opera and street singing, as well as marionettes (small
wooden figures operated with strings) and hand puppets. Popular hobbies
include stamp collecting, model trains, and gardening.

19 • SOCIAL PROBLEMS

Ethnic differences between Belgium's Flemings and Walloons have
been sources of social conflict. Religious divisions have also caused
tension within the country. Social problems include unemployment, high
rates of immigration, gradually increasing crime, and the high taxes
needed to support Belgium's generous system of social benefits.

User Contributions:

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Do you have any more info on the Belgian trditional dress??
I really need to find out for an assignment of mine...
I know from visiting Belgium that their eveyday dress is just the same as here in Australia but in later times I cannot find a resource with satisfactory information that explains in full the complete etchings of ancient Belgiums traditional dress.

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Your information is great and well spread. You covered basically everything about the Belgian culture! The only thing i would change is that in sports, you left out field hockey, a very popular game in Belgium. Alos, under food, you left out French fries, specifically french fries with mayonnaise.

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